Newby Dog Owner question: Panosteitis

Titan1
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8621
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Lehi, UT US
Edited Date/Time 4/9/2019 8:20am


This is Mace...10 month old 75lbs German Shepherd mix (mom is for sure pure working line GSD...dad is supposed to be lab/pit...but nobody knows for sure)...

Anyway...vet diagnosed him with Panosteitis (growing pains). It’s apparently common in GSD’s-supposedly a genetic thing. Anyone else have any experience with this?

The pains come and go in his front legs (sometimes the right leg, sometimes the left leg, sometimes both at the same time)...with varying pain levels (sometimes so bad he’ll lay on the ground and whimper...usually just bad enough that he’ll walk with a limp).

Vet gave me a pain meds for those really bad days...and said the pains could last until he’s 2....said to avoid rigorous exercise even when the symptoms aren’t there...which is brutal as this is a working line dog and he has a ton of energy and when his legs don’t hurt he wants to go 100 mph all the time.

I dont want to get a 2nd opinion from another Vet (at least not yet)...and I know there are some dog lovers up in here so I figured I’d ask if any of you have any experience with this?

Thanks in advance.
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WEAL
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DE
4/8/2019 2:35pm Edited Date/Time 4/8/2019 2:39pm
This will come and go until the dog is grown up but will not leave deficits. Make sure you feed him with low fat, low proteine and low calcium. If you could change the feeding to BARF you will lessen the problem a lot. The illness is on the tube bones only and the dog should be kept a little slim to lessen the load on the bones but of course no starving. You can take him into the pool for a little swim but not too much running on the hard floor. If he wants to work despite the illness, you should lay short trails for him to use his nose (and his brain) - that will make him tired within 50 or 100 yards so not a lot of walking but a lot of sniffing and finding a sausage at the end of trail.
Good luck!
3
Titan1
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Lehi, UT US
4/8/2019 5:48pm
WEAL wrote:
This will come and go until the dog is grown up but will not leave deficits. Make sure you feed him with low fat, low proteine...
This will come and go until the dog is grown up but will not leave deficits. Make sure you feed him with low fat, low proteine and low calcium. If you could change the feeding to BARF you will lessen the problem a lot. The illness is on the tube bones only and the dog should be kept a little slim to lessen the load on the bones but of course no starving. You can take him into the pool for a little swim but not too much running on the hard floor. If he wants to work despite the illness, you should lay short trails for him to use his nose (and his brain) - that will make him tired within 50 or 100 yards so not a lot of walking but a lot of sniffing and finding a sausage at the end of trail.
Good luck!
Thank you!

You sound like a Vet?

One more question about him...he’s had soft stool for basically his entire life. In the mornings he’ll go and it will almost be normal at first, then gradually get softer...5 minutes later he’ll go again, softer still...then about 5 minutes later he’ll go again, almost water this time.

I just had his stool tested for parasites, and he just finished one round of anti-biotic. Still the same problem.

Any thoughts on that?
WEAL
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Location
DE
4/9/2019 1:10am Edited Date/Time 4/9/2019 2:43am
No vet but 30 years of dogs, started with a great dane and a Dobermann puppy, went to a lot of dog shows, won a world championship with a mastiff in Milano/Italy and finally realised what a bunch of idiots most so-called breeders are so I turned upside down and got all the following 15 dogs from shelters or pounds. Mostly great danes as the bigger and older they are, the less chance they have to get a good home. They all had a super life with us here and are all buried in my own 20000 sq meters backyard. They came with all sorts of health problems and we always found a solution. The easiest way to cure stomach, kidney and liver problems, apart from matt fur or wet spots in fur/on the skin is always the food. Go back to nature and leave all the chemical crap in the ready-mixes behind you and treat your dog like a wulf. Here in Germany we call it barf - "born again raw feeders" or "bones and raw food". Be aware that cattle meat in USA might be polluted a lot more with antibiotic/toxic crap than it is here in Europe. The meat with the least chance of upsetting your dogs stomach is horse. Here in Germany we could buy all sorts of meat that was put through the grinder and then frozen into plastic bags. Additional food to the meat should contain minerals, vitamins and oils. Have a look at this site, it explains it: https://www.barfworld.com/ForDigestion/DogFoodforSensitiveStomachs
So what would I do to your dog: I would reduce the amount of his regular food to 1/2 and add meat to compensate. After a couple days I would reduce again and add meat and that additional stuff. Within a week you would be completely away from the factory crap and your dog should be feeling better, his stomach will be used by then to handle the raw meat. To make the meat ready for feeding I have one portion thawing on the kitchen table every day. Don´t put it in the microwave, don´t let it sit in the heat. If the portion is to much for one day it is no problem to put it in the fridge as long as its only cooled but not frozen again. Feed your dog in the morning after the walk or swim and feed him in the evening. His stomach relies on proper timing so adjust your day to his needs now. I feed at 9 am and 6 pm - everyday, everywhere. Your dog will need around 250 grams meat twice a day plus the additional food containing all other essentials.Be aware that the dog needs a rest after the feeding so no children playing with him etc, just leave him alone for at least an hour.
Try the barf thing - it´s the single most effective cure to a lot of problems, I hope you will get the desired results.
Good luck!

4/9/2019 8:20am
WEAL wrote:
This will come and go until the dog is grown up but will not leave deficits. Make sure you feed him with low fat, low proteine...
This will come and go until the dog is grown up but will not leave deficits. Make sure you feed him with low fat, low proteine and low calcium. If you could change the feeding to BARF you will lessen the problem a lot. The illness is on the tube bones only and the dog should be kept a little slim to lessen the load on the bones but of course no starving. You can take him into the pool for a little swim but not too much running on the hard floor. If he wants to work despite the illness, you should lay short trails for him to use his nose (and his brain) - that will make him tired within 50 or 100 yards so not a lot of walking but a lot of sniffing and finding a sausage at the end of trail.
Good luck!
Titan1 wrote:
Thank you! You sound like a Vet? One more question about him...he’s had soft stool for basically his entire life. In the mornings he’ll go and...
Thank you!

You sound like a Vet?

One more question about him...he’s had soft stool for basically his entire life. In the mornings he’ll go and it will almost be normal at first, then gradually get softer...5 minutes later he’ll go again, softer still...then about 5 minutes later he’ll go again, almost water this time.

I just had his stool tested for parasites, and he just finished one round of anti-biotic. Still the same problem.

Any thoughts on that?
My Rufus does that. Basically normal for him. He eats so fast too. Blows out a soft one then drops some unformed in another spot.

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Foghorn
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4/10/2019 5:27pm
Our Newfoundland eats raw. Small turds and zero food issues for what it's worth.

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